Sunday, December 16, 2007

Elmore Leonard's original novel OUT OF SIGHT is one of my favorite books. It is a rich emotionally involving work that features some of the best writing the great Leonard has ever done. In Jack Foley and Karen Sisco, Leonard created two of his greatest characters and he invests them both with a lot of humanity, humor and style. I've seen the book described as a romantic comedy, and I think that is true in the best possible terms. It is also nostalgic, exciting and ultimately very moving. Here are several of the books various covers that it has had. It is also available in two audio versions (one read by Joe Mantegna) which are both very well done. Screenwriter Scott Frank was smart enough to stick very closely to Leonard's original work for the most part, and his screenplay is also available from ScreenPress books and is highly recommended in its own right.Leonard himself was a big fan of Soderbergh's great adaptation and information on his book can be found here, at the Elmore Leonard website. It is also worth noting that OUT OF SIGHT wasn't the only Leonard book that Karen Sisco pops up in. She is also the key player in the great short story KAREN MAKES out that is available in the essential WHEN THE WOMEN COME OUT TO DANCE collection. It was this story that provided the basis for the acclaimed KAREN SISCO pilot in 2002.

I am the editor and co-creator of the quarterly print only publication Art Decades as well as the author of the upcoming From Emmanuelle to Chabrol: Sylvia Kristel in the Seventies. I'm also the creator of a number of film and music blogs including Moon in the Gutter, Fascination: The Jean Rollin Experience, The Sylvia Kristel Archives and Harry Moseby Confidential. I live in Colorado with my wife Kelley and our three dogs Maizie, Topper and Ziggy Pop.